1. Field of the Invention
Non-hydrocarbon fuels, especially for internal combustion engines, but useful for heating combustion also.
2. Description of Prior Art
It has been said that a diesel engine can be operated on any carbonateous structure that can be liquified, or even a dust such as coal powder but as a practical matter there are some fuels which are far better in a diesel engine than extreme examples such as peanut oil.
It is well recognized that in the present world economy, fossil fuels are far less expensive when processed into a useful fuel than vegetable oils of any kind. Nevertheless, development of farm produced, renewable vegetable oil fuels is proceeding on many levels against that day when fossil fuel is exhausted or politically excluded from international trade.
Probably one of the better concise background prior art studies is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,397,655, inventor William M. Sweeney and assigned to Texaco, Inc. of Whiteplaints, N.Y.
The teaching of the prior patent recognizes that vegetable oil may be extended by the addition of ethanol, but when so extended, is vulnerable to water contamination and phase separation or haziness.
The referenced patent is ingenious in handling the water contamination process by the expedient of a catalytic reaction of the water with a ketal in the presence of an acid environment which acts as the catalyst. This is the reason for an acid medium. This procedure simply catalyzes any water into alcohol, thereby eliminating the water problem and producing a useful fuel. Acetal or orthoester are alternative reactants.